Seven years ago he was one of four passengers in a safari vehicle when it was hit head-on by a truck in December 2006, killing four people including two Australians. Mr Richer escaped with a fractured spine.

His love for Kenya, and his Kenyan wife Lesli, kept him in Africa. ''My wife inspired me to come back to Kenya, to start afresh,'' he said in a video filmed by his employer, international advertising agency, Tbwa Flame Tree Advertising.

But on Sunday morning the 39-year-old Australian was shot dead in Kenya by a gang of up to 10 men, including some who were wearing police uniforms when they stormed into his home.

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Mr Richer was shot twice in the chest at close range in his house in the upmarket Runda estate in Nairobi in the early hours of Sunday.

Advertising industry personnel told Fairfax Media that jobs in Africa pay more handsomely than those in Sydney but come with obvious risks.

Nairobi police commander Benson Kibue told Kenyan newspaper The Daily Nation that at least 10 attackers, including six who were dressed in administration police uniform, raided Mr Richer's home just before 2am on Sunday.

The gunmen are believed to have cut through the rear fence and tied up a number of guards before raiding the house and shooting Mr Richer, the Kenyan newspaper The Standard reported .

Mr Richer was taken to Aga Khan Hospital, but was pronounced dead. Mrs Richer, also was home at the time of the robbery but was not injured.

The thieves escaped with a television, phones and two laptops, according to The Daily Nation.

Mr Kibue said no one had been arrested over the robbery, which occurred in one of the most affluent neighbourhoods in Nairobi and that police were trying to establish whether the suspects in police uniform were in fact officers.

Tbwa Flame Tree Advertising's Tim Smyth, told local media that Mr Richer was a ''wonderful person'' who had been working for the company for about five years.

''He has travelled across Africa to represent lots of companies and lots of brands and has worked with many, many young Kenyans to help them grow their skills and their passion for advertising and creativity,'' Mr Smyth said.

''He's a great ambassador for our industry. He's certainly going to be sorely missed by many of the young Kenyans that he helped over the past almost decade working in Kenya and across Africa.

''We were about to negotiate some new long-term deals for him to move ahead and continue to work and help us grow our business and industry here. It's craziness.''

The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade said the Australian High Commission in Nairobi was liaising with local authorities on the incident which led to his death.